Sindur Khela ( bn, সিঁদুর খেলা), literally meaning 'vermillion game', is a
Bengali Hindu
Bengali Hindus ( bn, বাঙ্গালী হিন্দু/বাঙালি হিন্দু, translit=Bāṅgālī Hindu/Bāṅāli Hindu) are an ethnoreligious population who make up the majority in the Indian states of West Benga ...
tradition where women smear each other with
sindur
Sindooram is a traditional vermilion red or orange-red coloured cosmetic powder from the Indian subcontinent, usually worn by married women along the part of their hairline. In Hindu communities the sindoor is a visual marker of marital stat ...
on
Vijayadashami
Vijayadashami ( sa, विजयदशमी, Vijayadaśamī, translit-std=IAST), also known as Dussehra, Dasara or Dashain, is a major Hindu festival celebrated at the end of Navaratri every year. It is observed on the tenth day in the Hindu ...
, the last day of the
Durga Puja
Durga Puja ( bn, দুর্গা পূজা), also known as Durgotsava or Sharodotsava, is an annual Hindu festival originating in the Indian subcontinent which reveres and pays homage to the Hindu goddess Durga and is also celebrated ...
. On the day of the Vijayadashami after the conclusion of the ritual worship, married Bengali Hindu women apply sindur on the forehead and feet of the goddess and offer sweets to her. Then they put sindur on each other's faces and offer sweets to each other.
Origin
The exact date and place of origin of the tradition is not known.
According to one theory, the tradition originated around 200 years ago in the
Durga Puja
Durga Puja ( bn, দুর্গা পূজা), also known as Durgotsava or Sharodotsava, is an annual Hindu festival originating in the Indian subcontinent which reveres and pays homage to the Hindu goddess Durga and is also celebrated ...
s of the
zamindar houses to usher bonhomie among the housewives.
According to a second theory, the tradition of Sindur Khela is as old as Durga Puja itself, around 400 years.
The ritual is enjoyed just like a game and hence the name ''Sindur Khela''.
Sindur Khela is regarded as one of the most important rituals of
Vijayadashami
Vijayadashami ( sa, विजयदशमी, Vijayadaśamī, translit-std=IAST), also known as Dussehra, Dasara or Dashain, is a major Hindu festival celebrated at the end of Navaratri every year. It is observed on the tenth day in the Hindu ...
.
![Sindoor Khela-011](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Sindoor_Khela-011.jpg)
Contemporary ritual
![Sindoor Khela in Sainthia](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/Sindoor_Khela_in_Sainthia.jpg)
The ritual worship of the goddess concludes with the Visarjan Puja. It is followed by Devi Baran, where the married women bid farewell to the goddess. The women are usually dressed in white saris with red borders and adorn traditional jewelries.
Each of the women perform ''arati'' and smear the goddess' forehead and feet with
sindur
Sindooram is a traditional vermilion red or orange-red coloured cosmetic powder from the Indian subcontinent, usually worn by married women along the part of their hairline. In Hindu communities the sindoor is a visual marker of marital stat ...
. They also offer her sweets and betel leaves.
Following that the women smear each other's foreheads with sindur.
Then they put sindur on each other's ''shankha'',
''pala''
and ''noa'',
the conch shell, coral and iron bangles respectively, which are worn by the married
Bengali Hindu
Bengali Hindus ( bn, বাঙ্গালী হিন্দু/বাঙালি হিন্দু, translit=Bāṅgālī Hindu/Bāṅāli Hindu) are an ethnoreligious population who make up the majority in the Indian states of West Benga ...
women. Then they smear each other's faces with sindur. Finally they offer sweets to each other as ''prasad''.
According to commonly held belief, if a woman plays Sindur Khela by following the proper custom, she will never be widowed.
Sindur Khela symbolizes the power of womanhood in protecting her husband and children from all evil. Through the ritual of Sindur Khela, the Bengali Hindu women pray for long and happy married lives of each other.
Family tiffs and petty quarrels between neighbours are settled through this ritual.
Unmarried women and widows are barred from participating in the ritual, but a recent campaign by the Calcutta Times has revived the practice of just women - be it married, widowed, transgender individuals or women of the red-light area, to play with Sindoor to show that this is a universal bonding for all women, all sisters and not restricted only to married women.
In some parts of
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...
, Sindur Khela is celebrated before
Vijayadashami
Vijayadashami ( sa, विजयदशमी, Vijayadaśamī, translit-std=IAST), also known as Dussehra, Dasara or Dashain, is a major Hindu festival celebrated at the end of Navaratri every year. It is observed on the tenth day in the Hindu ...
. In
Dubrajpur
Dubrajpur is a city and a municipality in Suri Sadar subdivision of Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Geography
Location
Dubrajpur is located at . It has an average elevation of 77 metres (252 feet).
Connectivi ...
, the Sindur Khela is celebrated on Mahasaptami itself. After bathing the ''nabapatrika'' and the following ritual worship, sindur is applied on the forehead of the goddess. After that the married women engaged in Sindur Khela.
In the village of Bijra near
Memari
Memari is a town and a municipality in Purba Bardhaman district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Geography
Location
Memari is located at . It has an average elevation of 25 metres (82 feet).
Urbanisation
95.54% of the populatio ...
in
Purba Bardhaman district
Purba Bardhaman district is in West Bengal. Its headquarters is in Bardhaman. It was formed on 7 April 2017 after the division of the previous Bardhaman district. Great revolutionary Rash Behari Bose was born in village Subaldaha in the district ...
, the family pujas of Ghosh and Bose family celebrate Sindur Khela on Mahastami. The tradition is almost 500 years old. After the ritual worship on Mahastami, the entire married womenfolk of the village celebrate Sindur Khela. Many people from adjoining areas came to Bijra to see this ritual.
Criticism
The ritual has been criticized in the recent times for multiple reasons. The ritual has been criticized as non-inclusive in character because the participation in the ritual is strictly limited to married women only. In 2017, The Times of India initiated an Internet video campaign featuring
Rituparna Sengupta
Rituparna Sengupta is an Indian actress and producer who is known for her work in Bengali cinema and Hindi cinema. One of the most successful actresses of Bengali cinema, she rode the crest of her box office success in the late 1990s. She won ...
, that called for participation of single women, widows, divorcees, transgenders, lesbians and sex workers in Sindur Khela.
The ritual has been criticized by
Taslima Nasrin
Taslima Nasrin (born 25 August 1962) is a Bangladeshi-Swedish writer, physician, feminist, secular humanist, and activist. She is known for her writing on women's oppression and criticism of religion. Some of her books are banned in Bangladesh ...
for being patriarchal in nature, because of the over emphasis on the married status of the goddess as well as the women.
Bengali Hindu girls grow up seeing the married ladies in their family participate in the playful ritual, which creates among them a sense of life being incomplete without getting married. Critics feel that this can create a regressive impact on young women.
In popular culture
Every year, the Kolkata-based celebrities including the Tollywood actresses engage in Sindur Khela at the Manicktalla Chaltabagan Lohapatty puja pandal in north central Kolkata.
Sindur Khela is a colourful, vibrant and spectacular ritual and so it has been the focus of Indian films.
Some films and soaps have been titled in the name of the ritual.
* Sindur Khela (1999), feature film
* Sindoorkhela (2010–12), television soap
*
Ki Kore Toke Bolbo
''Ki Kore Toke Bolbo'' () is a 2016 Indian Bengali language romantic drama film directed by Rabi Kinnagi and produced by Shrikant Mohta. The first look poster of the film was released on 15 January 2016. This title was inspired from song ''Ki ...
(2016) originally titled Sindur Khela, feature film
See also
*
Kali Puja
Kali Puja, also known as Shyama Puja or Mahanisha Puja, is a festival originating from the Indian subcontinent, dedicated to the Hindu goddess Kali. It is celebrated on the new moon day (Dipannita Amavasya) of the Hindu calendar month of Ashway ...
*
Holi
Holi (), also known as the Festival of Colours, the Festival of Spring, and the Festival of Love,The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) p. 874 "Holi /'həʊli:/ noun a Hindu spring festival ...". is an ancient Hindu religious festival ...
References
{{Culture of West Bengal
Durga Puja
Culture of West Bengal
Bengali Hindus